The Ones that Go Unheard
by StrawberrieJam
Summary: Amu wishes she could return to her perfect life but she can't; everyone knows that a filthy and disgusting girl like her should be punished... Right? Abuse and rape. Amu/Ikuto; Amuto R&R!
1. Perfection

**Hi! This is going to be a chaptered fic! I hope you enjoy! Please review!**

**I don't own Shugo Chara!  
**

* * *

Amu lay back onto her bed, listening to the water hissing and boiling. She was going to cook some spaghetti for Tadase because it was their first anniversary. They had been dating for one, whole year. Others would laugh at that kind of number; many of her friends had been dating with the same person for several years, some up to even seven. She sighed and got up, excitement bubbling from her stomach. At times like this, she regretted rooming with Tadase—they _were_ in college so it _was_ her choice and _she_ was the one to blame—because she didn't want him to walk in on her when she was freaking out like this. She jumped when she heard the fire hissing and ran to the kitchen, only to see the water overflowing. She cursed underneath her breath before mixing the water and dumping some bundles of spaghetti. She vowed to keep a good eye on the spaghetti and leaned onto the refrigerator behind her. Making spaghetti was a lot simpler than she thought it would be, and she was thankful. Amu could not cook to save her life. She could barely even toast bread without burning it; she was so very lucky that the spaghetti wasn't ruined—yet.

Once the spaghetti was ready and set out, Amu went to her room and began to dress up. She wore a red, modest dress that went to her knees and wore a matching pair of heels. She let her tied hair down and brushed it through once, making sure to pin down the unruly strands. She debated on wearing makeup but because this was a special occasion, she dabbed on some foundation and applied a little bit of eyeliner.

"Okay," she said and smiled at the girl reflected in the mirror.

"Amu?" a voice called from outside. _'Tadase! Perfect!_' she thought, dashing to the door. She smoothened out the creases in her dress and patted her hair down before opening the door.

"Hi!" she said breathlessly, lips upturned into a large smile.

"Amu!" the blonde responded, wrapping her into a warm hug. His ruby red eyes sparkled happily at the sight of her.

"Come on, Tadase! Why don't you drop your bag off and come to the dining room?" He nodded and went to his room to drop his stuff off. Amu quickly ran back to the kitchen and grabbed a few candles. After she lit them, she carefully walked to the dining room and set down the candles. Right on time, she could hear his heavy footsteps coming down the hallway. She rushed to the doorway and switched the lights off, waiting for Tadase. The door swung open and she held her breath, waiting for any type of response or reaction. When he said nothing, she frowned slightly and she feared that he was completely unhappy.

"Amu! Did you do all of this… for me?" he turned to her, his eyes rimmed with tears.

"Y-yeah." Amu led him to the table by the hand and sat down. "Try it! I made it myself." She watched him intently as he forked some spaghetti into his mouth and chewed slowly.

"This is lovely, you're so… amazing!" he smiled at her meaningfully, and she ducked her head, glowing from all the praise she received. As they ate, small talk continued and Amu slowly began to fall into the rhythm. Tadase would say something, she would giggle in response. She would then say something and Tadase would smile. Amu's heart fluttered at Tadase's gentle smiles and at his cute, red eyes. She put her hands in her lap and waited for the kiss that would probably come soon. She excused herself to go to the bathroom and inspected herself in the mirror carefully, making sure there was nothing stuck in her teeth. She walked out again and sat down daintily, waiting for his next move. He looked at her gently.

"Amu, today is our one year anniversary, and I have something for you too." He went around the table and went on one knee, eyelevel with her. Tadase pulled out a red and gave it to her. She opened it and gasped. It was a necklace with a large, red ruby and although she was very thankful, she felt that somewhere, deep inside, this was wrong.

Amu jumped at the sudden ringtone breaking the silence

"Um, I'll go get that and I love this! This is so beautiful!" she quickly ran to the living room and grabbed the phone, grumbling as she picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"H-hello? Amu?"

"Dad?" Her dad's voice sounded frantic and rushed and Amu could hear that his voice was sore.

"You need to come to the hospital now!"

"What? What happened dad?"

"Your mom… sh-sh-she got into an a-accident. You have to come! O-oh, Amu, the d-doctors are coming, I'm going t-to go!" Her garbled questions were answered by the long beep.

"T-Tadase! I-I have to go!" she called out shakily, while grabbing her keys and wallet and running out the door.

"What's wrong?"

"J-just stay here!" She shut the door in his face and began to run. Another sudden call broke her from her run. She checked the caller ID and she slowed to a complete stop.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Amu. This is Tadase's mother." Tadase's mother had never taken a liking to Amu. Tadase was rich, handsome, polite and "too good" for someone lowly like Amu who was poor, "foul", and ugly. He had fought with his mother for a while and managed to get her of Amu's back for a while but she was back and Amu was afraid to know what she had in store for her.

"Y-yes?"

"How is your mother?" she cut to the chase.

"S-she just got into an accident, why?"

"Car accident right? I am _so _sorry for your loss," her voice was sickeningly sweet. _'How did she find out? It's not like she's even the one who was there… Oh no!'_

"N-no… No… You didn't…"

"Didn't do what hun?" Amu could hear the wicked smile in her voice and she felt fear, anger, and misery all at once.

"Y-you! You did it! How could you? Why, no, how could you do that to her? She-she—"

"Oh dear, I haven't got the faintest idea of what you're talking about. But you know, I always have one wish for you. Think about it, hmm?" Amu screamed into the night, her hands shaking in fury? Fear? Misery? She didn't know. She thought of her fragile mom lying in bed and a sudden burst of energy filled her.

Amu began to run; she didn't know where she was going exactly but she had to grab the taxi or bus first. To make her situation better, a dark cloud slowly rolled into view and she could feel the beginning of a hard shower on her head. But Amu didn't have time to waste. Her salty tears mixed with the rain water and she wasn't sure if that was blood in her mouth because all she could do was run. At one point she must have taken her shoes off because when she was in the taxi cab, she was clutching them securely.

She yelled at the taxi driver to go quicker, she had no time to waste, a person was dying and she thrust a random bill into his face before running off to the hospital.

Amu's dad was a mess. He was holding her mom's hand tightly, tears spilling out of his eyes uncontrollably. When he saw her, he looked up, his eyes red and disoriented.

"A-Amu. They said she might have a day." Amu felt herself collapse onto a chair or maybe it was the bed itself or maybe it was the floor. She dragged herself to her mom and grasped her lithe face into her hands, screaming, trembling as loud sobs were choked out. She felt nurses swarm around her and she let herself be pulled away outside where she curled up into a ball.

Her mom wasn't going to leave her like this. She would see Amu's children. She was going to be a grandparent. She was going to go on a vacation that Amu paid for. Amu had so many things left to do with her. She couldn't be leaving! She got up quickly and decided she was going to wake her mom up. Her mom would wake up to her voice! She wiped away the tears roughly and went to Midori's bed.

"Mom, I love you."

The steady beeping transformed to a horrible, monotone beep that never seemed to end.

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**A/N: Please R&R? Especially because I'm very, very, very new to this website and writing fics and some encouragement would be nice! :D**


	2. Beginnings

**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

X

Amu felt herself being thrust aside and she couldn't register what was happening fast enough. She saw a flurry of white coated doctors rush in, nurses at their sides. Amu heard her father—or what seemed like her father—howling in agony. She was pushed out into the spotless hallway again and Amu sunk to the floor, her throat constricting.

Her mother wasn't dead. There was just no way.

She tried to breathe in but she felt something heavy on top of her, pushing her down to the floor. Amu's hands flew to the perpetrator but her hands simply sliced through the air and she heard nothing but her own wheezes.

Amu turned to her side and saw someone coming, a man, it seemed, and she tried to speak but choked on her own words. He was nearing her. There was no way he could miss her! When he was almost in front of her, he seemed to sense something wrong because he looked down at her and his eyes widened slightly. Amu felt hands shaking her before her vision faded and all she could see was her mom.

X

When Amu woke up, she was laid in a white, cold, bed and she realized she was in the hospital.  
"Hello?" she croaked, and a nurse walked in promptly, a clipboard in hand.

"Hello."

"Why am I here?"

"You had fainted outside of your mother's room and a man brought you here." Her mom! She shot up quickly and ran to her mom's room, relieved to see that her mom was still there when she arrived. She sat down next to her and lay her head next to her mom's.

It was all just a dream.

Her dad was slumped over onto the bed, breathing heavily as if he had run a marathon. She got up and shook his shoulder gently.

"Dad?" Amu stepped back in shock when his head snapped up, his eyes dark and sinister.

"We're going home." Tsumugu started getting up, his stormy eyes locked with hers.

"Wait but mom is still-"

"Midori is dead." His terse words were a slap to her face, bringing her back into reality. He took one last glance at Midori before stiffly walking out the door. Amu stared at her mom's pale face and dragged her feet out the door, trying not to break into fresh tears.

The walk home was silent and tense. Amu couldn't help but feel that this was her chance to get away before something bad happened.

The usually welcoming pastel yellow house felt unfamiliar and uninviting. Amu shivered when she entered, slipping her shoes off. The bang of the door shutting surprised her and she stumbled in, the feeling of unease only growing. She quickly grabbed a sweater hanging nearby and draped it on.

"Amu. I got a call from Tadase's mother." The coldness of his voice scared her; her father was never so cold.

"What did she say?" What did Yuuki have to do with anything?

"She said that Midori got hit by a car. Because of you."

"Wait, w-what? I didn't do anything." Amu stepped back as her dad began to advance on her. Her mind was going overtime. What did she do? What had Yuuki said?

"You killed Midori. You killed Midori. You killed Midori." Tsumugu repeated it like a mantra and he grabbed her by the arm, his fingers pressing into her soft skin mercilessly.

"O-ow, that hurts dad!" Amu whimpered, trying to pull away futilely. The sudden change in his demeanor stunned Amu; the last time she called, a few days ago, he was bright and cheery as always.

"I bet a useless girl like you wouldn't even know why," his vice like grip tightened and Amu could feel the bruises beginning to form. What had happened to her dad?

"I didn't do anything! I have no idea what you're talking about!" A bit of anger began to form in her stomach at the injustice. She had done nothing.

"Stop it dad! What the hell happened? I know you're upset that mom passed away but you can't just take it out on me!" she said, trying to wrench her arm out of his hold.

Hot pain suddenly filled her cheek and she gasped, turning to her dad in horror. He panted heavily as he lowered his hand down. His eyes were filled with complete fury, something she had never seen before. A wave of fear filled Amu when she realized she wasn't going anywhere.

"Don't you DARE talk back to me, you slut." Tsumugu stomped toward the basement, dragging Amu along roughly. He swung the creaky door open and shoved her in, watching as Amu tripped down the staircase, collapsing when she reached the bottom.

"Think about what you did wrong."

The door slammed shut and Amu sat in the darkness alone.

X

Ikuto slammed the car door shut and walked into the hospital coolly, walking past the front desk. He had memorized the route to the room already—was it the 45th time visiting? He couldn't remember; he stopped counting a long time ago—and navigated through the halls.

Ikuto's mind was occupied with worries and he nearly missed the girl convulsing on the floor. He picked her up and carried her to a random nurse nearby before mindlessly walking to his destination. Normally Ikuto would have stayed behind and asked if she was okay but he was far too busy now.

When he reached the blank, white door, he steeled his heart before pushing the door open.

A girl with long, blonde pigtails lay in the bed, her breathing irregular. Her eyes cracked open, and a bright smile painted her face when she saw him. "Ikuto! I missed you!" her voice was weak and quiet. Ikuto managed a small smile and sat on a chair next to her bed.

"Hello, Utau. How are you today?"

"I'm good. The nurses said that I'd be able to leave the hospital in two weeks if the transplant goes well." He smiled gently and patted her head.

"That's great. Are you nervous?"

"Not really. I'm more excited. I can't wait to get out there!" She stared wistfully out the window, her hands clutching a small, white snowdrop.

"Did that boy come again?" He unconsciously molded his hands into fists.

"Kukai? Yeah, he did. See?" She waved the flower in his face, eyes bright with happiness. Ikuto unclenched his hands and sighed. He left Kukai alone only because he made Utau happy. Anything that brought Utau laughter was going to stay. "How was school?"

"Terrible. Like always." Utau giggled softly before breaking into coughs, bending over her sheets. Ikuto quickly reached over and pat her back worriedly. "Are you okay?" She smiled weakly at him, pushing him away.

"I'm fine, Ikuto."

"Utau, you have to be careful." She rolled her eyes childishly.

"I'm gonna be okay, so calm yourself! Aren't you busy today? Go do your homework." Ikuto sighed before kissing her on the cheek and made his way back home.

X

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed!  
Any comments/concerns?  
Review(or else no updates!(?))  
**


	3. Funeral

**Hello! Sorry for the lack of updates; my computer broke . **

**Please, please, please review! It's very discouraging to see that I get views but no reviews because I don't know whether I should continue this or not. Nothing much happens here, sorry!  
**

**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

****X

Ikuto plopped down onto his bed, leaning back into the soft embrace.

"Mr. Ikuto?" a voice outside his door said tentatively.

"Come in." A young girl nervously teetered in.

"Um… Mr. Kazuomi is calling you." Ikuto cursed under his breath and walked to the doorway. The girl cowered underneath his shadow and he rolled his eyes impatiently.

"Are you going to go or not?"

"O-oh! Of course!" He shook his head at her retreating figure. A new maid. He hated the new ones. Ikuto cleared his head and walked to the large doors that led to Kazuomi's office. The wooden doors had small intricate carvings of multiple fairy tales with the usual fairy tale ending.

He knocked on the doors and entered when he heard the tell tale admittance cough.

"What do you want?"

"Ikuto. That's not nice." The older man swiveled his chair towards Ikuto and smiled slowly, his leathery lips stretching over gleaming, white teeth.

"I don't really care. What do you want?"

"You know, Ikuto, Utau is still under my care. So…" Ikuto bit back a curse and bowed stiffly.

"Hello, Mr. Kazuomi. For what reason did you call me here?"

"Better. Anyway, you have a new assignment. You're to kill a girl."

"Then that's my last."

"Since it is a killing job, it is your last assignment. I keep my promises. I'll give you the details by the end of next week, but prepare yourself."

Ikuto nodded curtly before heading back to his room. He opened a small blue book and gazed at the neat row of boxes he had drawn. Eight were already crossed out. A job where he killed someone was worth two boxes.

One person and he and Utau would be free forever.

Forever.

X

Amu sniffed the air and fought back a vomit. It smelled like something was rotting. She stepped around in the dark and found the cord that would turn the light on hanging from the ceiling.

Amu was scared of the dark, or rather, what was hidden in the dark. There were always two cases to the darkness; either what she found in the blackness would be worse or better than what she expected. So when she wrapped her hand around the long chain, she hesitated. But it was better to know… right?

Before she could regret it, she yanked the cord in one swift motion and shut her eyes. The lights flickered on and off and when they seemed to stabilize, Amu hesitantly opened her eyes and bit back a scream.

Carcasses of rats, birds, and other animals were strewn on the floor carelessly, some only bones and others with tufts of fur or feathers sticking out. Near the back of the basement were multiple white webs with hungry looking spiders staring at her.

Amu screamed and turned the light off before bending over and emptying the contents of her stomach onto the floor. She scrambled back onto the foot of the staircase where there was nothing but dust and wept silently. Amu pulled the sweater closer to her in a feeble attempt to protect herself from the animals.

Nothing she screamed to her dad seemed to change his mind and Amu sat on the stairs wide awake.

Was she really worthless?

Did she really deserve this?

Amu was on the brink of a breakdown; maybe she really did deserve this, maybe she should have died but a small flicker of hope in her stomach kept her from diving into the well of despair she was standing at and she raised her head.

X

After what seemed like two days, the door creaked open.

Amu looked up to see her dad towering at the top of the stairs, dressed in a black suit.

"Get ready. We're going to your mom's funeral in an hour." His silhouette left and she staggered up the staircase before the door could lock her in again. Amu shut the door quickly and locked it before going up to her room to shower. She scrubbed herself clean, being mindful of the bruises on her legs.

When Amu finished, she sat in front of the mirror and sighed. A bruise had formed on her cheek. Amu rifled through her drawers and took out a small, unopened bottle of concealer. She carefully dabbed some onto her bruise and evened out the color before inspecting it from farther away. She was new to concealer and makeup.

"Are you done?"

"A-almost!" Amu quickly found a modest, black dress and threw it on before pinning her hair back with a clip and went downstairs.

"About time…" he muttered. Amu lowered her head and they made their way to the funeral.

X

Amu was half surprised to see Tadase and his mother at the funeral. She had completely forgotten about him when she was in the basement.

"Where were you?" Tadase asked gently, rushing over to her.

"I-I was with my dad. Sorry…"

"No, no! It's okay, I understand." He rubbed her shoulders soothingly and she closed her eyes and thanked God for a wonderful boyfriend.

Amu was pulled away into a flurry of people who mourned with her and patted her on the back.

When the funeral was over, she made her way over to her dad who was sitting on a chair by himself.

"Um dad? I'm going to go back to Tadase's."

"Just go."

It was all it took for Amu to get into Tadase's car and hopefully back to her normal life.

X

Amu returned to school with a heavy heart. Thankfully, her routine wasn't disturbed; she went to school before retuning back to her home and sleeping.

Amu enjoyed only English and art, the two subjects where she got to express herself subtly. Both classes were a mix of students from all years, depending on what they were majoring in.

"Amu?"

"Y-yes?"

"What did I just say?" Amu desperately racked her brains trying to figure out what she had just said. It was something about a project since they had just finished learning how to efficiently analyze the subtext. The teacher sighed exasperatedly. "We're making newspapers in pairs for your project. I'm pairing you up." Amu slumped over onto her desk and waited for her name to be called. The teacher's voice droned on in the background and she could hear squeals of delight and groans of annoyance.

"Hinamori Amu and Tsukiyomi Ikuto." Amu looked around. Who was this Ikuto?

"Hey." A husky voice said next to her. She turned around, face to face with a man with blue hair so dark it was almost black. "Listen, I'm sort of busy in between classes, so can you just meet up with me at Café Benne?"

"Sure."

X

Amu drummed her fingers on the chocolate colored table impatiently. She checked her watch. He was running ten minutes late. She was about to get up and leave when she saw a tall figure make their way over to her table.

"Sorry I'm late. I had things to take care of."

"Okay. So we shouldn't have to meet up too many times since we just need to write a story and then edit the other's. I'll write the first chapter and you can write the second."

"That's fine by me. We can meet at my house for the first part tomorrow." He slid her a paper with an address and walked away before she could say anything more.

X

"Hello, Amu." Amu dropped her bags onto a nearby chair and jogged to the living room.

"Yuuki…"

"Ah, yes, it is me. I'm going to stay here for a couple of weeks."

"W-what? B-but I didn't get a notice!"

"Because I didn't send one. I wonder why you're still here?"

"What do you mean?" asked another voice as Tadase entered the room, holding a small bag.

"O-oh, nothing dear," Yuuki said quickly, standing up to hug her son.

"I got you something!" he said, turning to Amu. He pulled out a box and opened it slowly, watching happily as her eyes widened. "Since you're so down lately, I wanted you to be happy!" He lifted the necklace out of the box and fastened it behind her neck. Amu fingered the pearls gently and smiled.

"Thank you Tadase… You didn't have to do this…"

"Anything for you, dear. And one more!" He pulled out another box and Amu saw the anger flitting across Yuuki's face. This time, the box sheltered a matching pearl ring and he fitted it onto her middle finger. "It fits you so perfectly. Doesn't it mom?" Tadase turned to Yuuki and she forced a smile.

"Of course dear. Now go up and get changed for dinner." As soon as he was out of sight, Yuuki turned to Amu and growled.

"Thanks to you my son doesn't even notice his own mom."

"I-I-" Yuuki dashed over to her and yanked her necklace, causing it to break open. The pearls skittered about on the floor and Amu gasped.

"Stay with my son. I dare you."

X

**Please review! It means lots to me!**


	4. Learning from the Outsides

**Hello! Please, please, please review! It's so encouraging to read them! **

**I don't own Shugo Chara!  
**

X

"Yuuki! "

"Dear! You need to be more careful with your belongings. Now, if you don't want Tadase to get mad, why don't you run along and clean it up? I'm going to go make some dinner." Yuuki strode away, a smirk on her face.

Amu fought back the tears that rushed to her eyes and dropped to the floor, looking for the pearls desperately. She gathered them in her palms and carried put them back into the box and sat back in the couch, rubbing her face wearily.

X

The next day, Amu biked her way into the large mansion that Ikuto lived in. It was a modernized home that was clothed in Japan's latest technology. The first walls of the first floor were made of glass and she could make out a sofa and a large TV, but the rest of the walls were closed off by black curtains. She couldn't help but gasp as she gazed up at the roof, where she could make out a parasol, and awkwardly approached the door. She knocked timidly, still awed.

The door swung open to reveal Ikuto dressed in a cotton shirt and jeans.

"Come in. We have three hours to work."

"O-okay." Amu gingerly placed her bike next to the door and started to walk in, only to trip over the door frame and into Ikuto's arms. When she realized where she was, she flushed a bright red and jumped backwards, only to tumble down the staircase.

"I-I-"

"Sh!" Ikuto held a long finger to his lips and gazed around the large field. He swore he had just heard a click. A small rustle sounded from near Amu and he ran and parted the bushes triumphantly to be greeted by a small rabbit. It's nose twitched and stared at him for a while before it hopped away nonchalantly.

"W-what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just thought I heard something. Let's go in." Ikuto offered her a hand and she accepted it carefully. Amu trailed behind him as he began to take long strides into his house. "Well I brainstormed some ideas last night, and I thought about the theme of the story." They walked into the house and Ikuto shut the door firmly, locking it, still wary of the rustles and clicks he had heard. Ikuto sat down onto the sofa and Amu followed suite, placing her small bag onto the space next to her.

"I brainstormed too. It could be a story about abuse, something that's all too common nowadays."

"Mmm, that's not a bad idea. Do you want to write the first chapter?"

"Sure. So what's the basic plotline going to be? I was thinking about a seemingly normal girl who gets abused at home…"

"Going for realism? Alright. But, how is it going to end? Like one of those fairytales or one of those 'and everyone died' endings?"

Ikuto was startled when Amu turned to him, her golden eyes burning into his own.

"I don't know. We'll have to find out." Her words slightly disturbed him and the sincerity of her eyes left goose bumps on his skin.

"Okay. I guess we'll see what you come up with first." Ikuto and Amu began to create basic plotlines and possible scenarios. Each one seemed to lead to a dark, sinister ending and Ikuto frowned at that. He proposed another one with a similar beginning but something that led to a happier ending.  
"That's not realistic. I don't think that would happen in real life." Ikuto glanced over at her and sighed, resting his chin on his palms.

"Amu, not everything in life makes sense. Sometimes there are miracles. Maybe this character has a miracle too. Besides, the teacher would probably give us a better grade. You know she's a sucker for romantic stuff." Amu shrugged before stretching, leaning back into the sofa and took a quick look out the dark window.

"Oh! I-I have to go. Bye!" She gathered her belongings and grabbed her coat before running out the door. Before he could bid her goodbye, she was already out of sight, her bike gone.

Ikuto raised his eyebrows before returning to the table to gather his own things when he realized that she had left her bag there. He checked his watch and decided his stomach was a more important matter. He'd drive by her house on his way to visit Utau.

Ikuto opened the cupboard and took out a package of spaghetti and began to boil the water. As the water boil he grabbed the bag and decided to put it by the entrance so he wouldn't forget. He heard a small thud as he hung it near the door, and he looked down.

A small white box lay on the white carpets and curious, he picked it up. He debated not opening it but he found himself opening the box. Inside were small, round pearls the size of his pinky nail. The string that was used to connect them was coiled at the bottom.

Ikuto picked up a pearl and rolled it between his fingers. It would be easy to fix.

X

Amu pedaled furiously, checking her watch every once in a while. She was supposed to be making dinner that night; at this rate, she would be late and Yuuki would scream at her.

Fortunately, there were no cars and she was able to get back home quickly. Unfortunately, she was five minutes late.

Amu doubted that Yuuki would yell at her over such a minor problem; she could always make up the time, right?

She washed her hands quickly and set a large pot of water over the stove. Amu quickly began to wash a few vegetables and cut them quickly. As she cut, she underestimated the distance between her finger and the knife, causing the knife to slightly cut through her skin.

"Crap!" Amu rushed to the sink and washed the cut and glanced at the time. She hastily wrapped a band aid around it and returned to the cutting board.

Amu dumped the vegetables in and added some seasoning at the same time. The rice was cooking, the side dishes were waiting in the fridge. Amu grabbed a slab of meat and began to slice carefully, ignoring the pain from her finger. She had roughly thirty minutes left. She deposited the meat into the pot and began to run around, setting down the side dishes.

"Amu?" the girl turned around and saw Yuuki coming towards her.

"Yes?"

"Can you make me a salad? A pretty one."

"B-but, I'm running out of time!" She had to scoop the rice and then the soup would be done soon after.

"Oh dear, you can't do anything can you? I guess I'll just tell Tadase that you aren't a suitable wife... Besides, I found a much prettier, competant girl. Her name is Saaya. I wonder if he'd-"

"I-I'll do it soon! Don't worry!" Amu rushed to the refrigerator and pulled out lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, and other vegetables.

"You better be ready in fifteen minutes~" Yuuki pranced away, humming a merry song. Amu began to cut the onions. She felt hot tears pricking her eyes and she wiped them away with the back of her hand hurridly.

"Stupid onions," she muttered as more tears spilled down her cheeks and onto the apron.

Amu checked the time and realized she had five minutes to scoop the rice and set the soup. She grabbed three bowls and rapidly began to pat rice in, wiping her eyes before Tadase came down and saw her. She thrust the food onto the table but froze when she heard a clucking behind her.

"Still not done?" Yuuki stood with Tadase, her arms crossed over her chest. She sat down with a heave. "My son's a busy person, Amu. If you can't even prepare dinner quickly, you better worry because there are so many better women out there."

"I-I'm almost done!" Amu grabbed three bowls and poured some soup into them, trying to ignore the stares she received. She brought them to the table and sat down.

"Amu. You're not good enough for my son-"

"Mom! Stop it! She's perfect for me! It's okay if she's a little late!"

"Tadase! Shush! Your mother is talking. This is for your wellbeing dear, so you quiet down." Tadase looked at Amu apologetically and began to eat silently. "Amu, look at you! Such an ugly, weird hair color, short, ugly face, you can't do anything. Meanwhile, Tadase is handsome, tall, works diligently, is always succesful! Who do you think is getting the short end of the stick?"  
"...Tadase..," Amu fought the tears back once more.

"Exactly. Now that's why I'm-"

"Mom! Stop! Let's just eat." He grasped Amu's hand tightly and she winced, pulling her hand away. "What's wrong?"

"U-um nothing." Tadase shrugged slightly and returned to eating. Amu cradled her injured finger in her hand, trying to chase the pain away.

"I-I'm going out for a bit, I need a little bit of air." She excused herself and made her way outside into the chilly night. The tears that she had fought back began to reveal themselves and she leaned back into the gates of the house and sank down.

Amu let herself relax and felt hot tears pour onto her knees incessantly. She hated Yuuki. But she loved Tadase too much to leave.

Amu heard an awkward cough in front of her and she hastily wiped away the remaining moisture before standing up.

"Um... I came here to return your bag, you left it at my place... Are you okay?" Ikuto stood in front of her with her bag dangling from his arm, frowning at her.

"Y-yeah. Thanks!" she managed a small smile and took the bag from him gratefully. He pulled out a familiar white box from his pocket and handed it to her.

"I happened to see that your necklace was broken... I was bored so I fixed it." Amu gasped and received the box.

"T-thank you... It was really important to me."

"No problem. Did something happen to your finger?"

Amu glanced down and quickly hid her hand behind her dress.

"It's just a small cut. I'm fine." Ikuto rolled his eyes and pulled her wrist and gently prodded the finger.

"O-ow..."

"I thought so." He went to his car and came back to Amu with white gauze in hand. "For emergencies." He gently unwrapped the loose band aid and wrapped it with the gauze tigthtly before taping it at the end. Ikuto patted it gently and released her. "Well, I'm off!"

Amu watched his back as he walked away toward his car and she waved at him shyly. "Thank you," she whispered again before turning back and heading back into her own home.

X

Ikuto's mind wandered to Amu as he drove to Utau. He wasn't one to be nosy but she seemed to be pretty distressed, considering she had the famed, rich Hotori Tadase as a boyfriend. He shrugged and went directly to the hospital.

When he got to Utau's room, he stood outside and took deep breaths.

One of Ikuto's greatest fears were that he would walk inside to find Utau dead and gone from him forever. He pulled the knob gently and peeked in, smiling when he saw Utau gazing out the window with a bouquet of flowers in hand.

"Ikuto!" Utau's eyes widened in surprise when she saw him.

"Yes, it is I."

"I'm so glad you're here! I thought you weren't coming today."

"No, I'd never miss a day with you. I was just working on a project with a classmate." Utau held up her flowers proudly and lifted it to his face.  
"Fresh, new flowers from Kukai! They seriously help me feel better." She lowered them back to her face and smelled them. "They're so relaxing."

Ikuto was about to open his mouth to speak when he heard a knock on the door. He turned around to see a suited man with a briefcase in hand.

"This is for you, Ikuto." He handed him the case and bowed once before leaving the room.

"Hey, Utau. I'm going to leave the room to see what this is, okay?" She nodded happily and hummed while sniffing her flowers.

Ikuto left the room and walked into the deserted waiting hall. He opened the briefcase and took out the manila folder that was waiting for him. It would contain some basic information about who he would kill.

Ikuto readied his heart for any shock that would come and opened the folders slowly. But no amount of readying could stop him from dropping the folder in shock.

Hinamori Amu's soulful, honey eyes stared back at him from the fallen papers.

X

**A/N: Please, please, please review! ^^~ It's probably really tiring to hear it, but it really is such an encouraging thing for me and it helps me to write faster~  
I'm aiming for 15 reviews! The more reviews, the faster the updates!(hopefully)  
Any comments? questions?  
Review!**


	5. The Last Day of Happiness

**Hello, my lovely (few) readers heehee~~ I personally enjoyed writing this chapter because this is where everything really beings to unravel. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! I also changed where Tadase and Amu live. They live in a sort of mansion like place but it's not that big, it's around three floors. That's why Yuuki is able to move in and it sort of explains later events. Enjoy~~^^**

**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

X

A trouser leg came into Ikuto's view, blocking Amu's face from him. The man leaned over and picked up the papers before sorting them neatly and setting them on Ikuto's lap.

"So you know her?" Ikuto stood up, face to face with Kazuomi.

"No. She's just a classmate." Kazuomi smiled slowly and patted his back.

"Alright. We'll find out soon enough."

Ikuto turned on his heels without a word and walked away, his footsteps echoing throughout the hall. His stride was confident and his head was high, but Kazuomi didn't miss the slight tremor in his hands as he glanced down at the papers once more.

X

Amu entered the house with a small smile on her face that didn't go unnoticed by Yuuki. She frowned slightly before walking outside to talk to someone. The night air was freezing. She would have to make the call quick.

"You have them right?...Good…Good…Send it to me by tomorrow morning. Amu won't be here anymore." Yuuki flipped her phone off with a brush of her hand. She pocketed her phone quickly and sauntered over to the kitchen, where Amu was humming while washing the dishes.

"Amu!" Amu turned around, her pale pink hair framing her face perfectly. Yuuki hated her for that. This low-classed beggar had stolen her son away from her with just a pretty face.

"Yes?" Amu paused her gentle scrubbing and smiled at Yuuki. The smile seemed spiteful and rude and Yuuki had to hold herself back from kicking her out the door right now. She would let Tadase have the honors of doing that.

"When are you leaving?" Yuuki glanced at the china plate Amu was holding in her hands. It was halfway above the sink, water dripping off of it. A sudden idea filled her mind and she quickly began putting it into action.

"Sorry?" her eyebrows knit together in confusion. Yuuki walked closer to her, forcing her to turn around fully to face her. Yuuki held back a smile when she saw the plate hanging in mid air, supported by nothing but a pair of delicate hands.

"You filthy bitch, you don't deserve my son. Leave! You stole him from me and now you're dirtying him with your lowliness! I am absolutely revolted by you!"

Yuuki saw Amu's hand shake slightly and she congratulated herself before continuing her attack.

"What are you? Nothing! Just a beggar that got lucky and got taken in by my Tadase! How dare you turn him into someone who just picks up garbage off the street? You're nothing but a piece of chewed gum! You're a useless bitch!"

Amu's mouth fell open in shock and the plate crashed to the ground, shattering into small pieces. Why was Yuuki acting like this?

Yuuki screamed in horror and stumbled backwards and fell, somehow evading the pieces of porcelain on the floor.

"I-I-I'm so sorry! I-" Yuuki screamed even louder as she noticed the small cuts on her feet.

Tadase burst through the door, eyes widening when he saw the broken plate and his hysterical mother.

"W-what happened?"

"I-I dropped the plate! I was just clumsy! I'm sorry!"

"No, it's okay. Let me just check mother out. Can you start cleaning the glass?" Tadase didn't wait for a response and quickly turned to his wailing mother. He began to inspect her feet and dabbed at it with a clean napkin lying on the table.

Amu turned to the mess and grabbed a broom and pan and swept all the pieces carefully, scanning the floor for any small pieces. She vaguely remembered Tadase telling her that he would take Yuuki upstairs and sank down onto the chair as a tear escaped her eye.

Amu reached up to wipe a tear but winced and stared at her hands and feet. They were bleeding somewhat heavily and some shards of porcelain were still embedded in her skin. In her hurry, she had failed to notice her own wounds.

Amu grabbed a wet towel, tweezers, and gauze before limping over to the sofa and tending to her cuts. She removed each piece and gently patted it with the towel, cleaning it. Once she finished, she wrapped her feet and hands tightly in gauze.

She climbed up the stairs, exhausted, and trudged over to Yuuki's room in order to check in on her. Yuuki had two band-aids, one on each foot. It seemed that she had only two, small cuts. Amu sighed in relief before staggering out the door and into her room. She collapsed onto her bed and leaned back, being mindful of her injuries.

A light knock sounded on the door.

"Amu?"

"Come in." Tadase entered the room and shut the door carefully before setting himself down on her bed.

"Are you okay? Sorry I couldn't help you. Mom was just really hurt." Amu smiled gently.

"It's okay. You were right to protect Yuuki." Tadase broke into a grin and squashed her in a hug.

"I knew you would understand! Thanks!" Tadase kissed her on the forehead before bidding her goodnight and leaving the room. Amu pushed back the disappointment that he had failed to notice her injuries. But it wasn't his fault was it? She shrugged lightly and limped to the bathroom to get ready to sleep.

x

Amu jumped when a hand popped into view on her desk. She looked up, a little taken-aback when she saw blue eyes gazing down at her.

"We need to meet up tomorrow. Can you come to my place again at three?"

"Y-yeah." Ikuto nodded once and was beginning to walk away when he noticed her hands.

"Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah. I just dropped something. Silly me." Amu laughed nervously but quieted down when Ikuto stared at her without responding. "W-what?"

"Just… be careful next time, okay?" He gently patted her on the back of her hands before beginning to walk away.

"I-Ikuto! You're a really nice guy!" Ikuto paused and turned around, raising an eyebrow.

He had been called numerous names before, but nice wasn't one of them.

"I-I mean it! You just seem cold, but your heart is really warm!" Ikuto chuckled at this and continued to walk away and Amu looked down at her hands.

Ikuto… who was he really? Amu quickly shook her heads and imagined Tadase.

Tadase was her lovely boyfriend.

x

When school was over, Amu rushed up the stairs and into her room to start her homework. She had so much homework and still had to write the first chapter of the group project short story. She quickly washed her face and changed before sitting down and pulling out her laptop.

Amu tried to think of the character. How would someone who was abused feel? She thought about her experience in her basement and shivered. It would help her to write this, but she didn't have any firsthand experience. Amu would just have to look it up.

She typed up a rough draft of the first chapter. In her opinion, it wasn't able to capture the raw emotions of the victims. Amu groaned in frustration but decided to print it out. She would have to ask Ikuto for his ideas.

"Amu?" Amu peered behind her chair to see neat blonde hair, not a strand out of place.

"Oh! Tadase!" Amu got out of her seat and threw her arms around his neck welcoming him home. He chuckled softly and gave her a small pat on the back.

"Glad to see you to. Mom is calling, looks like we'll have to go see her." Amu suppressed a sigh and followed Tadase out the door and to the front of Yuuki's door. Tadase gently knocked and a voice welcomed them in.

Yuuki was propped up against a few pillows, a thick blanket tucked underneath her elbows. Her brown hair was neatly pinned by her ear and she wore a pink nightgown.

"Sit down."

Tadase glanced over at Amu and raised an eyebrow but sat down nonetheless. Yuuki turned to them slightly and lifted her chin up.

"Tadase, I want you to break up with Amu." Tadase sighed and gripped Amu's hand tightly.

"Mom! We already went through this! I said I woul-"'

"Tadase! Listen to your mother. I would have let you guys meet but… I discovered something recently."

"What?"

"Amu. Go get my bag." Amu looked over at Tadase who smiled at her reassuringly and she stood up and grabbed the beige purse off the vanity and approached Yuuki nervously.

Yuuki stared at her for a while and smirked before snatching her bag away. Amu sat back down and glanced at Tadase. He didn't seem to have noticed the exchange between herself and Yuuki.

Yuuki pulled out a white handkerchief and sighed dramatically before leaning back into the pillows.

"I thought Amu was acting a little strange, so I asked someone to follow her for a while."

"Mom! Please!"

"Listen to me. Anyway, it turns out that she was seeing another man."

"What are you saying Mom? Do you honestly think I'd fall for that?"

Yuuki dug through her bag and pulled out an envelope and handed it to Tadase solemnly. Tadase opened it and pulled out a few photos. Amu watched as his shock was turned into tears.

Amu desperately racked her brain for ideas. She hadn't been seeing anyone. Who could Yuuki be talking about?

"A-Amu? Is this true?" His ruby red eyes were watering with tears. A look of hurt was on his face and Tadase handed over the photos and Amu scanned them quickly, nearly dropping them in shock.

There was a photo of her in Ikuto's arms in front of his house. Another one at a café. And then another one of him handing her a box with a necklace.

"I-I-"

"Tadase! She's been cheating on you! Aren't those photos enough for you? I couldn't bear for you to get hurt. This is why I'm doing this!" Yuuki dabbed her eyes with the handkerchief and sobbed loudly.

"N-no! Wait! This isn't wh-"

A sudden, brute slap to her face sent her reeling back in pain. Amu clutched her cheek and stared at Tadase in horror.

Tadase stood up slowly, his face red with fury. His distress had somehow changed to anger in an instant and Amu couldn't help but gape at him.

"How dare you… How dare you do this to me? After all that I've done for you? You little ungrateful bitch!"

Tadase threw a punch into her stomach and she stumbled backwards in pain and astonishment.

"Wait, Tadase, I don't think-" Yuuki began, her eyes widening slightly.

"No, Mom. I'm the one that saved her from death. And I'll be the one bringing her back." Yuuki gasped and could only watched as Tadase grabbed Amu's wrist and roughly dragged her out the door, slamming it shut.

She leaned back into her pillows and rubbed her temples soothingly.

Had she just created a monster?

X

Ikuto stopped by the hospital, three bowls of ramen in hand. He had promised Utau to meet Kukai there. Since Utau loved ramen, he decided it would be good to feed them both.

When he was in front of her hospital door, he heard a bright, airy laughter. The sound surprised him; Utau didn't laugh too much recently. Yet here she was, laughing on and on. A low voice said something and another peal of laughter rang through the air.

Ikuto knocked gently and the laughing stopped.

"Ikuto?" He opened the door and stepped in to see Utau's usual, white face replaced with a healthy peachy color.

Next to her was a boy around Utau's age with spiked, chocolate brown hair, his bright green eyes sparkling with joy. Ikuto didn't miss Utau's hand quickly slipping out of his.

The boy, probably Souma Kukai, stood up and proudly held a hand out to him.

"Hello! My name is Souma Kukai, and I am Utau's boyfr- OW!" Utau yanked him down and whispered into his ear furiously.

"It's okay Utau. I wouldn't be your older brother if I couldn't figure out that you were dating." She blushed a fiery red but smiled gratefully. "Anyway, I bought some ramen. Your favorite Utau!"

"Ooh! Is it salted miso pork ramen with extra broth and soup?" Kukai asked, his smile brightening. "That's my favorite too!" Ikuto raised an eyebrow but handed out the food.

"You know my sister well."

"Of course!"

And Kukai rambled on while Utau laughed in between his stories. Ikuto couldn't help but smile at the sight; at least one person was finding happiness. The journey was slow, but Ikuto knew that there would be joy soon.

X

**A/N: Please, please, please review! Thanks to all who reviewed, and a special, special thanks to Nekoz Rule for welcoming me with open arms~~  
****18 reviews? Let's go!  
Comments? Questions?  
Review!**


	6. Disappearing Tears

**Hello~ I just want to say, I DON'T hate Tadase. I personally am ticked off when people refer to him as "Tadagay" or whatnot and it may seem like I don't like him either, but I do. It's just that this is Amuto, and, well, there's no space for Tadamu (:  
****So, just making it clear that I'm not bashing on Tadase; I simply couldn't think of a character that could play that part and I didn't want to make a new character.  
Enjoy~**

**I don't own Shugo Chara**!

X

The next morning, Ikuto sat down onto the school chair tiredly. He leaned forward and rested his forehead against the cool plastic of the table and heaved out a great sigh. He heard footsteps approaching him tentatively and he lifted his head lazily to see who it was.

A girl with rusty red curls stood in front of him, straightening her uniform skirt nervously. Ikuto recognized the girl—Yamabuki Saaya, if he remembered correctly—to be one of Utau's friends. She had come over to their house a couple of times back when Utau was still healthy. He smiled at her carefully; he honestly couldn't remember what kind of impression she had left on him.

"Hello, Saaya." She perked up at her name and smiled widely.

"You remember me?"

"Of course. Utau's friend, right?" Saaya nodded enthusiastically and neatly sat down next to him, arranging her skirt to cover herself properly.

"I had a question about the math homework. Can you help me?" Ikuto shrugged.

"Why not?" Saaya leaned over and pulled out a bright pink notebook and opened it to a page. She sat as close as she could to him, delighted that he didn't move away. As he worked out the problem, she blatantly stared at him.

Saaya had liked Ikuto for as long as she could remember, and had tried to make it obvious to him. Last year, his girlfriend had committed suicide and she had laid off for it for a while but she decided that he had had enough time.

"Do you understand now?"

Saaya snapped out of her thoughts and nodded quickly.

"Yes, thank you so much!"

"You're welcome." Ikuto turned to his bag and began to take out his books.

"U-um. Could I have your number? Just in case I need to ask more questions."

"Sure." Saaya quickly handed him a blank piece of paper where he wrote his number and slid it back to her.

"I'll help you any time since you're my sister's friend." Ikuto smiled at her warmly and returned to his business. Saaya nodded dumbly and walked back to her desk, a little dazed by the smile he had shown her.

Ikuto glanced over at the desk Amu usually sat at, surprised to see that it was empty. Today was the day to work on their project. He sighed and made a mental note to ask her for her number at some point. Amu was probably sick or something; it couldn't be anything serious.

Ikuto turned his attention to the front of the room when the teacher walked in, but his mind slid back to Amu. They would have to reschedule a time, unless she managed to make it to his house. He sighed and rubbed his forehead tiredly.

He hated group projects.

X

Amu desperately tried to wrench her wrist away from Tadase's strong grip. He growled and dragged her into her own room, throwing her to the floor.

"Is this how you repay my grace?"

"L-listen, Tadase, I-"

"DON'T. Call me by my name. You would just dirty my name. Mom was right. You _are _a filthy little bitch. Isn't that guy somewhat popular? What'd you do to get him?"

"I didn't do anything! I-I-" Tadase kicked her in the ribs harshly, knocking the wind out of her. Without another word, he disappeared. Amu felt her throat constricting. How could this be happening to her? Just yesterday, her life had been fine. Just yesterday, she had been happy.

The door opened again and Tadase reentered with a glass and a bottle of vodka. Amu's eyes widened in surprise—he never drank! He sat back into an armchair and poured himself a glass.

"So tell me," he said, "what kind of dirty deed did you do?" He downed the shot and wiped his mouth. Amu felt fear gnawing at her stomach and her lips were glued together. She couldn't find the willpower to open her mouth and speak.

"Tell me." He downed another shot.

"Did you sleep with him? I bet you did. I bet you're not even a virgin. Well guess what? Neither am I." Amu felt like she had just been struck physically. Tadase had told her over and over again that he was a virgin, and was waiting for her.

"What a fucking dirty slut." He laughed harshly.

"W-wait, Tadase, I-"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

Tadase threw his glass across the room in anger and it shattered somewhere behind Amu. There was a vein bulging from his neck and his face was red with fury. Amu couldn't help but cower in fear at this and a small whimper left her lips.

"What a piece of shit you are. Really."

Amu bit her lip, trying to stop the onslaught of tears that were threatening to fall.

"Are you going to cry? What right do you have to cry, slut?"

Amu shook, her eyes filled with fear and absolute terror. Tadase laughed and nudged her in the side.

"Hmm? Hey! Bitch! Answer to your master."

He rammed his foot into her side repeatedly. Amu couldn't believe what was happening to her. Who was this man in front of her?

And then she realized it.

Why couldn't she have seen earlier that those ruby red eyes weren't warm but rather crimson with wrath and vengeance? Why couldn't she have seen it coming?

"I bet you think I'm being terrible to you. But, bitch, did you ever realize that you deserved this? You were a terrible daughter to your parents. And now you can't even make a proper girlfriend."

Amu's world began crashing down around her.

Worthless.

Was that what she really was? Did she deserve this?

Amu found herself saying yes, chanting it like a mantra.

She deserved every bit of this punishment. And Tadase knew it.

Tadase saw the light in her eyes die out and she crumpled over in defeat. He smiled wickedly.

"Oh yes, bitch. You're a fucking piece of shit and now you're going to realize it." He stood up and dragged her up and threw her onto the bed.

"If you can't be a proper girlfriend, you can at least please me."

Amu's head whipped up in fear.

She wasn't ready for any of this.

"T-Tadase, I-" She felt a blow to her cheek and she fell back into the bed. Tadase loosened his tie and in a swift, single movement, wrapped it around her mouth.

"To silence you. You're too loud."

Amu began shaking her head in terror as he advanced toward her. She bumped into the headboard and began to wave her arms and legs around wildly.

"Why you—You little bitch! The least you could do is to just receive your punishment!"

He punched her in the eye and her head bumped into the board. Her mind blanked out from the pain and Tadase took the opportunity to flip her around and pin her down into the bed. He ripped a long strip of the bed sheets and tied her hands behind her back.

When Amu finally was able to realize what was happening, she felt her skirt getting ripped off. She shrieked against the gag in horror when she felt something against her entrance and tried to pull away. The pressure on her back increased tenfold.

Without hesitating, Tadase rammed into her and she screamed. She felt herself break open and nearly fainted from the pain that consumed her. He hadn't even bothered to lubricate himself before and the friction made her cry out in agony.

Amu felt hands press into her hips roughly and she could already feel the bruises beginning to form. Her body quickly began to lubricate itself in order to lessen the pain and she dug her face into pillow.

"Fucking _–hah_- slut_-hah-_ Worthless _–hah-_ bitch_-hah." _

Tadase wasn't merciful on her poor body and tore her open. He grabbed her legs and stretched them out for extra entrance. Amu's mind was reeling from the pain and shock that she couldn't even fight back. Tears were streaming down her face and she was screaming, crying for help. Tadase laughed and drove into her grinning when he saw the blood dripping down his girth.

He felt himself grow even bigger at the sight and he immediately released into her, moaning.

When he finished, he zipped his pants up and stood up, laughing at her pitiful state.

She was covered in blood, sweat, cum and tears and she was naked for the whole world to see. He untied his tie from her mouth and her hands and began to walk out.

"Don't even try telling anyone. Or else, you don't know what'll happen. Maybe you'll go back home to your _father._"

Amu froze.

Did Tadase know?

He knew what she had done wrong when she, herself, didn't know. Amu deserved this.

Amu lifted a blanket to cover her nakedness and lay silently by herself. Tears were streaming down her face and she trembled.

She had never felt so dirty and low before.

But maybe she had always been like this. That was what Tadase was trying to show her.

Amu lay in a pool of her own thoughts. When Amu finally found enough energy to get up, she saw the bright morning light peeping through the curtains. She dragged herself to the bathroom, pain shooting up and down her spine at every step. She lowered herself into the tub and filled it with warm water.

Her mind was still in a daze and she methodically scrubbed the dry cum and blood off of her thighs. No matter how hard she scrubbed herself, she couldn't rid herself of this disgusting feeling. She felt so tainted and used. Amu wanted to get rid of how repulsive she felt but only her skin came away, leaving raw, red marks.

She was born like this, wasn't she? Yuuki and Tadase and her father were right. She had done something to deserve all of this. She glanced at the bruises that peppered her body in various places, the most severe being by her ribcage.

Amu refilled the tub, sat back, and let herself cry silently.

Her salty tears dropped into the bath, leaving nothing behind but the emotions that shed those tears.

X

Yuuki sat on the couch in the living room, nervously tapping her foot. What was going on with Tadase and Amu? She shook her head quickly. It didn't matter—whatever Amu got was what she deserved. She nodded her head once to reassure herself.

"Mom?" a voice called from the entrance as the door shut.

Yuuki jumped up. Her one and only daughter was home!

The girl entered the house, slipping her shoes off and rolling a bag in.

"I heard that you were here, Mom. So I came too!"

"Saaya!" Yuuki dashed to her and wrapped her into a hug. "You came back from America! It's been, what, two years?"

"I was back for a while Mom, I just wanted to see if I could live on my own for a while. But I missed you too much, so here I am!" Yuuki ushered her onto the sofa and sat down next to her.

"So, any guys? You have to start dating if you want to get married you know!" Saaya blushed and huffed under her breath.

"Mom!"

"Well, do you?"

"Um… yeah…"

"Who?"

"Mom! I'm not going to tell you. I want to try to get him on my own. You're probably going to scare him away anyway." Yuuki was bubbling with curiosity. Who could it be? "Where's Tadase?"

"He's at school."

"Oh. And what about that girl, Amu?"

Yuuki hesitated. What was she supposed to tell Saaya?

"She's, um, not feeling well so she's upstairs. But don't go bother her. She'll probably come down for dinner."

"Alright. I'm gonna head upstairs and wash up. There's a guest room, right?" Yuuki nodded once.

"Second floor, the end of the hallway."

Saaya got up and stretched before grabbing her suitcase and lugging it up the staircase.

It felt so good to be home.

She couldn't wait to see Tadase—how glad would he be? She was more neutral about Amu—she didn't necessarily like her but she didn't hate her either. She was, she supposed, a little happy to see her too.

Saaya went into the room and fell onto the bed, humming contently.

She couldn't wait to see Ikuto again the next day.

**A/N: Well, I want to know how you felt about this chapter, so please, please review! You don't have to ever review again(I lied), I just really want to know your opinions. By the way, I'll try to update again this week since I do have the week off, BUT it'll depend on the number of reviews(probably not). After that, it'll go back to the usual once a week update.  
Aiming for 25 reviews~ Go, go, go!  
****Comments? Questions?**

**Review!**


	7. Inevitable

**Hello everyone!~!~!~!~! I'm sorry this update is late, although technically it isn't because I didn't _have _to post this week, but I promised it, so it really is my fault and I am rambling. Thanks to everyone who reviewed! These reviews really put me in the mood to write! I just wanted to announce that anonymous reviews are on for those who don't have accounts, so I expect more reviews, heehee~~**

**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

X

Saaya unpacked her bags and skipped downstairs happily, delighted to see that Tadase was home.

"Tadase!" She jumped into his arms and squeezed him tightly. The blonde chuckled and hugged her back, kissing her on the top of her head. "I missed you!"

"I missed you too. How was America?" He unbuttoned his jacket and loosened his tie.

"It was beautiful! I have some souvenirs for you and a bunch of pictures to show you!"

"Now, now, Saaya. Let's eat dinner first, hmm?" She nodded enthusiastically. "Go get Amu, hon. She didn't come down yet."

"I'll go bring her down after I wash up for dinner."

"Saaya, you come over here and tell Mom what happened while I cook dinner, okay?"

"Okay!"

Saaya launched into a tale of how she arrived and what had happened. As Tadase went up the staircase, her voice slowly drifted off. He threw open Amu's door, smiling a little to see her squeak in shock.

"What are you doing?"

Amu hid her hands behind her back quickly, her eyes darting around frantically for an answer. She was still wearing her pajamas; she was a mess.

"I-I-"

Tadase snatched her wrist from behind her back and stared at what she was holding. Amu was looking away fearfully, a small tremor running through her body. Her other hand was guarding her chest carefully and she refused to meet his eyes. In her hand was a makeup brush and a concealer. He dropped her hand unceremoniously.

"Good. Get used to using that. I'll give you $20 if you need more."

Amu nodded slowly, still looking at the floor. Tadase advanced towards her and lifted her chin up, forcing her to meet his eyes.

"Come down for dinner, okay Amu? And change out of your pajamas." His tone had instantly changed brighter, a voice Amu hadn't heard for a while. He gave her a quick hug before walking out the door and into his own room.

Amu let out the sigh she was holding and tried to keep herself from shaking. She quickly turned to the mirror and finished putting the makeup on, hiding her bruises and cuts. She rolled up her sleeves and applied liberal amounts to her forearms. Just in case.

As soon as Amu was done, she changed into something nicer and headed downstairs, afraid that if she didn't, Tadase would punish her.

Amu was surprised to see a mass of curly brown hair downstairs and quickly tried to remember who she was. Did Tadase invite someone?

"Hi," the girl said, waving.

"H-hello."

"Remember me? Saaya!"

Amu forced a large smile onto her face and nodded until she felt like her head would fall off.

"Of course! Tadase's younger sister. Are you back from America?"

"Well, duh. Silly Amu, why do you think I'm here?" Amu nervously laughed and rubbed the back of her head.

"O-of course. Silly me."

Saaya turned to the table without a response and a torrent of stories came flooding out. Amu quietly settled herself into a seat, feeling lost. Tadase arrived and sat next to Amu, squeezing her hand tightly, in what she realized was supposed to be reassurance. Dinner began.

"So, Amu, why do you wear so much makeup?" Saaya asked, chewing her food loudly and rudely.

Amu froze in shock, not sure what to say.

"I-I-"

"Whatever." Saaya cut in, but Amu didn't miss the word _'slut'_ that she muttered under her breath. She blushed a bright red but wordlessly continued eating.

Yuuki. Tadase. Her punishers.

What was Saaya?

X

Ikuto walked into his English classroom the next day, relieved to see Amu slumped over on her desk. He approached her carefully and knocked on the underside of the table, making her shoot up in alarm.

"Hey. Can you make it today? Because you weren't here yesterday."

"I-I-I… um…." Amu rifled through her bag and quickly dug out a wad of papers. "Here. You can bring it back to me tomorrow. Bye." She turned away from him immediately and began writing on something.

"Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah. Bye."

Ikuto raised an eyebrow but shrugged and walked away; it wasn't really his problem. Did she always wear that much makeup? He shrugged once more and began reading her writing but stopped when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

"Yes?"

"U-um. Ikuto…" He looked up and smiled to see Saaya standing in front of him, holding a paper and a pencil.

"You need help?"

"Y-yes please."

"Okay, so here you just have to…"

X

Amu stared down at her phone. It was inevitable. She would have to go to Ikuto's house, one day or another if she wanted to finish the project successfully. She dialed Tadase's number slowly, fear slowly creeping into her system. She pressed call and the phone began to hum.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

"Hello?"

"H-Hi, Tadase. I-I need to go to Ikuto's house tomorrow…" Amu held her breath, waiting for a response.

"Of course you can go, honey. But you know what to expect tonight." A wave of fear flooded her mind. Amu felt large hands on her body all over again and she stopped breathing.

"I-I-"

"Bye." The phone clicked off abruptly and a deep pit of hopelessness filled her.

Was there any way to avoid this? Somewhere deep inside of her, she realized the answer was _no._ She couldn't.

Amu's phone vibrated and she looked down to see a text from Ikuto.

_From: Ikuto_

_Hey. Sorry to bother you, but we really need to meet up for this English thing. Is tomorrow okay?_

She quickly typed a response.

_To: Ikuto_

_Yeah, it should be fine. Sorry about today._

Amu threw her phone onto her bed and placed her head on her knees. She had to prepare herself for what was coming tonight.

X

Amu picked at her food during dinner, her stomach churning at the thought of the approaching night.

"What's wrong? Don't like the food?" Tadase asked, rubbing a hand down her back. She jumped in fright and shook her head furiously.

"N-no. I love it! I-I'm just… um… I don't have an appetite today."

Yuuki snorted.

"Ungrateful bitch."

Amu flinched and took a quick bite of her food, chewing it quickly before swallowing.

"Mom, let's be civilized," Saaya said, sighing. Yuuki rolled her eyes and jabbed her in the stomach.

"Saaya, I'm the adult here."

Amu rapidly finished her food and stood up to put her plate away. Soon, the whole "family" was finished and Amu cleaned the table. She began washing the dishes slowly, trying to stall.

"I'll be upstairs first, okay?" Tadase called.

"O-okay!"

"Hurry so you can come up!"

"O-okay!"

Amu dragged the scrub over the dishes, wiping them slowly and leisurely. She would give anything to avoid Tadase right now. She tried to think happy thoughts, and tried to conjure images of puppies and kittens. The classic.

A pair of arms wrapped around her arms and she jerked away water splashing onto the perpetrator's face. A pair of blood red eyes stared at her in anger.

"You better hurry the fuck up if you want to go to school tomorrow. And I'm only allowing you to see Ikuto until you finish the fucking project. Okay?" Amu nodded feebly. "Okay?!" he barked. She flinched and nodded faster. "Good. Get up as soon as you're done. You better be done in ten minutes or else." He smacked her head once and she whimpered but said nothing. Amu bowed her head down and waited for his footsteps to fade away before raising it. She wiped away the sudden tears and quickly returned to washing the dishes, keeping an eye on the time.

The faster the better; her punishment would (hopefully) be less severe. She carelessly flung the last plate onto the racket and dried her hands on her shirt before rushing upstairs.

Outside the door, Amu tried to soothe her frayed nerves; she didn't know what to expect.

She pushed his door open slowly and Tadase swiveled around, eyes darkening at the sight of her.

"Shut the door."

Amu obediently shut it and waited for his next instructions, her heart hammering in her chest.

"Come over here."

She crept over, her hands already beginning to shake uncontrollably.

"Get on your knees."

Amu froze. Was this really going there?

"I said, get on your fucking knees!"

Tadase pulled her by her pink locks and threw her onto the floor.

"Get on your knees."

Amu desperately scrambled about, getting onto her knees. She placed her quaking hands on her knees in an effort to stop them. Amu felt something hard hit her face and she paled, feeling sicker than before.

"Open your mouth."

She shivered and tried to look up, but found that her own head was refusing to obey her. A hand slapped her across the face brutally.

"Open your fucking mouth, you fucking slut. Do you not understand?"

Tadase grabbed her rosey hair and pulled her head straight up, earning a cry from her throat. He saw her cringe at the sight before her and roughly threw a punch at her head. She cried out again.

"Suck."

Amu opened her mouth slowly and took him into her mouth. Tears were glimmering in her rich, honey colored eyes. He kicked her in the stomach.

"Hurry the fuck up, bitch. I haven't got all day."

She reluctantly began to suck and he moaned in pleasure, bucking into her mouth. Tears were freely sliding down her pale cheeks by now. He pulled her closer to him and she gagged but he released, nonetheless.

"Swallow." He commanded ruthlessly.

She shook her head and he slapped her.

"If you want to go, swallow!"

Tadase heard a gulp and he tossed her onto the ground. He zipped up quickly. Amu lay on the floor pathetically, silently sobbing. He grabbed her by the wrist and harshly dragged her to the door.

"Go do your work or something, bitch."

He opened the door and pushed her out before slamming the door shut.

Amu slowly hobbled back to her room, coughing and spluttering. Her stomach gave a sickening lurch when she reached her door and she rushed inside to the bathroom. She leaned over the toilet seat, emptying the contents of her stomach into the bowl. She washed her mouth out in the sink after flushing and washed her face carefully, removing all traces of makeup. Amu cringed at the dark bruises spotting her face. She would have to go buy makeup tomorrow.

X

Saaya rushed upstairs after dinner, excited to text Ikuto. She quickly opened her phone and typed his name in as the recipient but hesitated.

What would she say?

_To: Ikuto_

_Hii. This is Saaya (:_

No. She seemed like a 5th grader.

_Hi, this is Saaya._

That seemed good. But what would be her excuse. No—she was a friend who just wanted to say hi. What would be so awkward about that?

_I just wanted to say hi, a little bored haha._

That would be good. She nervously sent the message and stared at the screen intently. No response. Her eyebrows knit together in frustration.

Tomorrow. She'd talk to him face to face tomorrow.

X

Ikuto lay in his bed, arms stretched behind his head.

Amu.

He had texted her earlier about the project and she had agreed to come for the project the next day. And then she never replied to his next text, "Are you okay?"

He groaned and dug his face into his pillow.

Not too close.

He would have to kill her.

X

**A/N:I don't know if I can post next week because school starts and next week is very busy because of that, but I'll definitely try.  
30 reviews as a goal guys! The last time really shocked me, you exceeded my goal considering that even though it was 25, I was sort of lying because the rate of reviews is pretty slow. Thanks for reading guys~~~~ Lots of cookies for those who review!  
****Comments? Questions?  
Review!**


	8. Impossible Revolts

**Hello! Thank you so much to everyone who stuck with me! Unfortunately, this chapter isn't too long because I have to study for my test tomorrow.. ): And, it's super rushed. After this week, I have another week before break! I'm so, so, so, so, sorry for not updating! I hope you can understand ): I feel so bad and this chapter is so terrible too, so I feel so terrible... I'm really sorry!  
**  
**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

X

Amu walked into school nervously, dread bleeding into her. When she finally located the classroom, she let out a sigh of relief. No one had seen her yet.

A large hand clamped down onto her shoulder and swung her around. A scream rose into Amu's throat when she saw one of her classmates bending over in laughter.

"Ahaha! You should have seen your face!"

"I-I-"

"Oh my goodness, you are SO funny!" The redhead brushed his hair back and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes dramatically.

Amu bit her lip and ran into the classroom, her knees wobbling with each of her steps. When she finally managed to get to her desk, she dropped down and grasped her chest. Tears were threatening to spill from her eyes but she hid them quickly.

"Hey, are you okay?" the boy asked, a small frown settling on his face.

"I-I'm fine! I'm sorry!" she nervously crossed her legs and held her arms against her body, as if defending herself from an invisible attacker.

"No, I'm sorry. I guess you were a bit surprised," the redhead said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. He returned to his seat where his friends were, laughing.

Amu flipped her small, white notebook open and began to write furiously, her hand still slightly shaking.

_I… I don't know what's wrong with me. I can't seem to stay around specific people without getting scared recently… It's probably just an irrational, stupid fear. Like me. I just wish…_

A cough from above her interrupted her and she slammed her book close before looking up.

"You're coming today?" Ikuto asked, looking at his phone. His gaze lazily flicked down to her before focusing back on his phone.

"Yeah. I-"

"Okay."

Ikuto walked away without a glance.

X

Amu approached the large door apprehensively. She was wondering whether she should knock or ring the doorbell when it swung open.

"Hey. Come on in."

Ikuto lumbered in and Amu trailed behind him, trying to calm her erratic heartbeat.

"Um… I have the draft."

"Okay. Is it okay if work in my room today? Someone's moving in so the living room is crowded."

"O-okay." Amu felt sweat beginning to prick her forehead. She didn't like beds.

Amu followed Ikuto up the stairs and in front of a navy blue door. He opened it and held it open for her patiently. Amu swallowed and tried to step in but found her feet glued to the floor. She gazed at the room and tried to see all the things inside but her eyes automatically focused on the bed.

"I-I-"

"Are you going to come in?"

Amu felt a new set of tears beginning to form in her eyes and swallowed the lump in her throat and willed her legs to move, but they would not. The bed grew bigger in her vision and her head began to pound.

"Amu?"

Amu heard a steady pair of footsteps behind her getting closer and closer. The bed was on the other side, bringing back memories of Tadase. She felt her vision begin to blur.

"Um. I mean if you don't want to, I guess it's okay. It's just…"

The footsteps behind her quickened and she thought she could smell Tadase's thick cologne.

"Amu," a voice said in her ear lowly. And a pair of hands grabbed her neck. She screamed and her legs gave way and she saw the wooden floor approaching her before her vision blacked out completely.

X

Amu awoke to feel warmth surrounding her. She snuggled deeper in when she suddenly remembered that she wasn't in her own home. Amu scrambled out of the bed and wildly searched for a door before running out the door, blood rushing to her head at the sudden movement.

"Ow...," she held her head in her hands and tried to massage her temples.

"Are you okay?"

Amu turned around to see Ikuto walking toward her, papers in hand.

"Y-yeah."

"I think you're sick. You seemed to have a slight fever. How are you feeling now?"

"O-okay. What time is it?"

"It's around six. You were only out for thirty minutes. I read the draft while you were sleeping."

"I-I'm sorry."

"No, it's fine really. I'm sorry if I made you feel pressured to go in the room. It was my fault. We can work on the staircase if you'd like." Amu nodded her head, grateful that Ikuto asked nothing and simply helped her.

They settled down at the top of the staircase.

"Okay. So the story is very bland and it isn't very… sad. I mean, it's good but it doesn't really capture the emotions perfectly. So, how about you look over the revisions I made and then try to rewrite it?"

Amu nodded slowly and they began to work, a comfortable silence enveloping them.

X

Amu walked inside to see a couple of Tadase's friends cheering loudly. Tadase was in the center of them, chugging down a large glass of beer.

"T-Tadase?"

Tadase looked over at her, and smiled widely.

"You're home! Come to the kitchen, I need to talk to you for a second." She nodded and nervously followed him, ignoring the loud cat calls she got.

"Who are they?"

"My friends. Were you at that damn house again?"

"Y-yeah. For a project! I told you." Tadase glared down at her his face hardening. "Where's Yuuki? Saaya?"

"They're out and having a girl's night or some shit like that. They're coming back tomorrow morning. Anyway, go upstairs and change into a nice dress and come down okay?"

"I-" His hand came down across her face.

"Go."

Amu nodded and quickly ran upstairs to get dressed into the most modest dress she could find and went back downstairs. Tadase saw her quickly.

"Hey, hey, guys! Look at her! She's here to dance for us!"

His friends clapped wildly and one had the audacity to slap her on the butt.

"I-I don't dance."

"Aw, come on babe!" One of the men said, dangerously close to her.

"I don't dance…"

She felt something pinch her backside and she yelped.

"T-Tadase!"

"Go on. Dance."

"I don't dance!"

"Bro, she doesn't have to dance. I need to go," one said and left. The others followed suit quickly, murmuring.

"You fucking bitch! I said to dance!"

"I don't dance!"

Tadase threw his glass at her and it shattered on the floor, sprinkling her legs and feet with the shards. He approached her quickly and slapped her again.

"Bitch, you listen to me! You're nothing but a worthless fucking bitch and you don't fucking deserve me but here I am keeping you!"

He shoved her down onto her knees roughly and she cried out in pain as the shards sliced into her soft skin.

Amu could already sense what was happening before he unzipped his pants and she resigned immediately.

This was her fate.

X

Amu staggered up the staircase, dried blood sticking on her knees and feet. He had been rough with her; it pained her to walk.

When she got to the bathroom, she cleaned herself thoroughly and tried to scrape the dirtiness off but it stayed on her, no matter how much she tried.

She felt herself break once more and the power she had gained before turned on her and gnawed away her confidence and pride. Amu looked at herself in the mirror. She hated herself.

Why couldn't she stand up to him?

Why was she so weak?

Why?

She deserved everything she got. She needed to be punished.

In a frightful flurry of frenzy, she dragged her nails across her skin, trying to rid herself of the filthy feeling in her, but it was too late. The filth was already deep into her bones and no matter how much she scratched and no matter how much she bled, nothing helped.

Because nothing was deeper than the bones.

X

**A/N: Again, I'm really, really sorry!  
****Questions?**

**Review! ^^**


	9. Tricked

**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

X

Amu woke up in the morning to the vibrations of her phone. She checked the caller and frowned. Ikuto? Why was he calling her so early in the morning? She cleared her throat and picked her phone up.

"Hello?"

"Hey. I was wondering how far you got with the story? Because we're not even up to chapter two yet, so I was thinking we should sort of speed it up. Could you come over today? I mean, assuming you got it done."

Amu froze. Shit! She hadn't even started!

"U-um. Yeah! Of course. What time?"

"How about around five hours from now."

"Sure. Bye." The phone clicked off from the other end and she made to jump off the bed but collapsed, a searing pain centered on her inner thighs. She hissed and picked herself back up, remembering the painful events of the other day.

A sudden feeling of hopelessness filled her and she suddenly realized she already knew what to write.

Amu managed to shower quick enough to return to her desk and begin typing. The words were already formed in her head and the scenes played out in her mind. She described the emotions that churned in her stomach, the despair, and the pain.

The pain.

It was the one thing that made her want to shrivel into a ball. But the worst of them all.

Shame.

She was ashamed of being used. She was ashamed she wasn't pure. She was ashamed she couldn't fight back. She was ashamed that she was alive. She was so ashamed she wish she could die.

Amu looked up at the curtains, and the image of herself wrapping the curtains around her neck tightly replayed in her mind. She closed her eyes and exhaled slowly, needing to get herself away.

She quickly threw her laptop into her bag and stood up. The last place she wanted to be was here. Her second home.

Amu grabbed her bag and threw some clothes on before running out the door, only to slam into a tall figure.

"Ow...," she muttered, clutching her head and stumbling backwards. She caught herself by the door frame and looked up before looking up and gasping lightly. "I-I-I'm so sorry, Tadase. I d-didn't see y-you. R-really!"

Tadase grunted before looking down at the bag in her hands. Amu quickly tried to move it behind her back but he was faster. He grabbed her wrist and yanked it forward, eliciting a cry from her and created what seemed to be another bruise.

"What is that?" he growled, gripping her wrist harder as she tried to pull away. "Are you going somewhere?" Amu looked around the room wildly. What was she supposed to say? Should she tell the truth? "Answer me!"

"I-I'm going to m-meet up with a f-friend for a p-project!" Amu said, her voice cracking from the pain.

"Who? Tsukiyomi?" Tadase scoffed, "Since when was he your friend?" Suddenly, his eyes darkened. "Or are you lying to me, little Amu? Is he more than a friend?"

"No! No! No! I swear! I didn't even mean friend! We're just acquaintances!"

Tadase sneered, his eyes lighting up angrily. "Really? How about you take me with you?"

"No! No! He'll get suspicious!"

"You'll just wear makeup. And I'd like to see him formally." Amu said nothing and hung her head. "Go clean yourself up and meet me downstairs."

Amu walked to the bathroom dejectedly and glanced at the mirror. Her makeup was rushed; spots of blue could be barely made out. Amu sighed and hit herself on the head once. She'd have to remember to be careful. She carefully dabbed on some concealer, wincing ever so slightly and moved onto her arms. As she had expected, a bruise was already well into formation.

Once she finished her 'job' she headed downstairs, her heart thumping in her chest slowly. She followed Tadase out the door, jumping slightly when the door slammed shut behind them.

"Amu dear," Tadase said, his voice light and sweet. Amu's head shot up and she stared in shock at the beautiful, ruby red eyes. Had this been all a dream? He laughed gently and pulled an arm around her thin shoulders. "Let's go in the car, hmm?" Amu nodded dumbly and followed in, sinking into the plush seats.

When they had driven farther away he turned to her and smacked her on the head.

"Don't get the wrong idea, slut. There was a family there. They looked sweet, unlike you." Amu winced and nodded, trying to ignore the insult. "Give me the address."

Amu quickly looked through her phone and found it. When she finally told him, Tadase's eyes seemed to widen slightly. Amu tried to gather enough courage to ask him what the problem was.

"I-is there something wrong?"

"Nothing you need to worry about." Amu nodded meekly, again, before fiddling with her fingers.

When they finally reached his house, Amu's heartbeat sped up. As they walked up the gravelly path, her heart thrashed in her rib cage wildly, like a bird trying to escape a cage. She lifted a trembling finger and pressed the doorbell.

_Ding_

The light noise traveled throughout the quiet house and Ikuto made his way to the front door. He was shocked to see an unknown blonde man, his arm wrapped around Amu's shoulders.

"Um..." Ikuto pointedly looked between Amu and Tadase.

"T-this is my boyfriend," Amu stammered before peeling herself away from him, only to be clamped to his side again, "and this is Ikuto, a classmate."

Ikuto raised his eyebrow. Why was she so nervous? It wasn't like he was going to bite her just because she had a boyfriend.

"Well. Okay. Are you coming in too?"

"No, no. I just wanted to drop her off," he smiled at Ikuto, his eyes slightly crinkling before turning to Amu. "Be good, honey. Have fun!" Ikuto didn't miss the squeeze he gave her on the arm, and he didn't miss the look in her eyes. He couldn't exactly place a finger on what it was, but he decided it wasn't entirely good. He shrugged to himself. It really wasn't his problem, unless she was getting beaten or something.

But that wouldn't happen... right?

Ikuto led Amu inside and was careful to show her to the now cleared living room/ They got to work immediately.

The change in Amu's writing was nothing short of drastic. The character's emotional turmoils were so perfectly portrayed, and her problems were so clearly and realistically outlined. It was almost as if she had been speaking from experience.

"Wow."

"Oh no...," Amu trailed off, looking nervous.

"No, it's really good!"

He was about to continue but a female figure walked in loudly, causing the two to raise their heads up in surprise.

Amu could only stare at the beauty presented in front of her. Her long, blonde hair was sported in pigtails, and her violet eyes were fierce. Her body was slim, bordering skinny, but her figure was still beautiful. But her skin was deathly pale, and Amu could notice the resemblance in color with her mother's, when she was ill. Despite the defensive stance, Amu could see her chest rising and falling rapidly; she was exhausted.

"Who are you?" the girl spat.

X

**Hello! I decided to write my notes on the bottom now (:  
****Anyway, I know this chapter was short, but I'll probably update at least once more this week. And contrary to what I believed, my week will be hectic. But of course, I will make time to update because, it's still a break and I will get my rest. And if I can't balance everything out, I'll just sacrifice some of my sleep time. And I don't mind because I was actually such a terrible updater.  
Thank you to those who have stuck with me, it really means a lot to me!  
Please review, it really brightens up my mood and gets me more into the writing groove.  
Thanks!  
-Strawberry**


	10. Gossip

**SORRY! I'll make excuses later, so enjoy!**

**I don't own Shugo Chara!**

* * *

"U-um," Amu stuttered, taken aback by the girl's sudden appearance. "I-I-"

"Are you here to fuck my brother?" Amu nearly choked on her own spit. Sex? With Ikuto? Amu backtracked. This girl was his sister?

"N-no! I-"

"If you're here for that, you better get through me first. I don't need some whore fucking around, okay?"

"Utau," Ikuto said calmly, shutting his eyes. "Not now."

"So she is here for sex, isn't she?"

"No. She's here to work on a project." Utau arched a thin eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Really."

"I swear to God, if I see you whoring around... But I'll take Ikuto's word for it." She haughtily flipped her hair back before stalking off upstairs, leaving just as quickly as she had come in.

"I'm sorry about that. She's my sister. She's just a little... protective. It goes both ways." Amu nodded slowly, wistfully wishing she had a protective sibling. Then she wouldn't be with Tadase. But her own father had left her. She shook her head. Even if she had a sibling, she would be with Tadase; she deserved it anyway. She was a slut, a bitch, a whore, a worthless piece of shit.

"Amu?"

Amu jerked forward quickly, snapping to attention while banging her head on the table.

"Ow..." she gripped her forehead, stumbling back in pain.

"Are you okay? Do you need some ice?" Before she could respond, Ikuto disappeared and returned with an ice pack in hand. She gratefully accepted it and put it on her forehead, relishing the numbing feeling it brought with it.

They returned to their work but a sudden drip of water on her paper stopped her. She took the ice pack off gently and handed it to Ikuto.

"Hey... You have a huge bruise on your forehead. I didn't think the bump was that hard."

A bruise...? Shit! She had forgotten that her makeup wasn't waterproof.

"U-um. Can I go to the bathroom."

"Sure. It's down the hall and around the corner." Amu sprinted to the bathroom, hiding her face with her pink hair. When she glanced at the mirror, she sighed in relief. The makeup had dripped down her face and revealed part of her bruises but it wasn't very noticeable. Amu washed her face quickly and dabbed her face with some makeup she had in her emergency pouch. Once she was fit, she hesitantly walked back out.

"Wow. Makeup can do wonders. I can't even see it. I wouldn't even be able to tell if you had ten bruises," Ikuto joked lightly, patting the spot next to him. Amu's face darkened but she said nothing, settling down next to him and grabbing her pencil.

* * *

When Amu got to school the next day, an unfortunate rumor ran through the school about her. Apparently, someone had seen her makeup pouch and assumed she was a slut. She didn't understand why that made her a slut but when she looked in the mirror, she decided her face alone was enough for her to be branded as one.

'_Did you hear? That Amu girl... Apparently Kio saw her accepting like $5 just for a blowjob. What a slut.'_

_'Seriously? No wonder... Look at her face. It's absolutely caked with makeup.'_

Amu sighed and leaned onto her desk. Class hadn't even started yet, but here she was, already hearing a small portion of the rumors that had sprung up.

"Hey," a voice called. Amu looked up, and winced slightly when she saw a sleazy looking boy standing above her. "Heard you were a prostitute." A couple of heads whipped toward them. The boy handed her a wad of bills. "I don't know if this is enough but get my friend laid, hm? He's still a virgin. And you're probably experienced. $20."

Amu's eyes brimmed with tears. A prostitute? Just how far had these rumors gotten? It had only been one day! She heard a few snickers from her left.

_'Wow. She sure is cheap.'_

_'I know right? But bro, I'd pay for that ass.'_

Amu grabbed the money and slapped it back at him angrily, half expecting a punch to fly for her face. When she didn't hear the high whistling noise that signaled a hit, she glared at him.

"I'm NOT a prostitute."

She stomped out of the classroom, her bag in hand, ignoring the whispers that flew behind her.

Amu wasn't going to deal with this kind of thing. Not today. But she couldn't go home so early. She sighed.

Amu wandered to the park and sat down on a swing, swinging back and forth slowly.

Everything was so complicated.

She had... _problems_ going on at home, and now here was another onset of trouble coming towards her.

What rotten luck.

But then again, she deserved it. Amu briefly wondered if she should visit her home but quickly threw that idea away when she thought about the barrage of punches and kicks she'd receive. Maybe she'd even be thrown into the basement. Then she wouldn't be able to go to school and it would be suspicious.

Amu thought about her beautiful mother with her silky, chocolate colored hair and gentle, brown eyes that were always crinkled. Her rose colored lips were always upturned in a gentle smile and her face positively glowed with happiness and whenever she was around anyone, this infectious cheer would pass on.

She missed her mother.

How she wished she had died in place of her mom. It would have been easier for everyone. No one would miss her anyway. Yuki would have gotten rid of her, Tadase could find a girlfriend, her dad could be happy, and she would be gone.

It was a little scary, though. The thought of not existing, the thought of being being drowned in the cold soil.

But she felt so hollow, and empty. As if there was no goal in her life, no reason for her existence. She didn't feel like eating or writing or drawing, she felt dead. Getting out of her bed every morning was becoming a chore; she wished she could just melt into it and die. Sometimes, she thought, she would do anything to get away from this emptiness inside of her that was eating her away. The emptiness was the worst. It was as if in her chest, there was no heart. There was nothing to fill this hollow, gaping hole.

The only reason she wasn't dead was because she was scared. She was a useless, sissy.

Amu glanced up at the already darkened sky. The sun was gone and in place of it was the moon. There were a couple of clouds blocking it, so it really wasn't useful, but the street lamps were on.

Amu got up, sighing heavily and followed the flickering light when she heard a sudden rowdy laughter approaching her from behind.

"Wow that chick's got a nice ass," she heard. Her breath caught in her throat and she quickened her pace.

"Mmm. Bet she's tight."

"Hey! Lady!" Amu broke into a run, panting as she desperately ran, her feet slapping against the pavement.

A flurry of shoes were heard behind her and before she could reach the end of the block, she was tackled down onto the floor. She squeezed her eyes shut as she was spun around.

"Damn, she was fast. Wonder if she could put those skills to use..."

Amu opened her eyes slowly, fear flooding into her as a group of men studied her closely. She opened her mouth to scream but felt a cold metal touch the back of her neck. She suppressed a couple of shivers that ran throughout her body.

"Listen. If you scream, you die. We just want to have some fun with you, okay? We're not going to hurt you... badly."

Amu felt a rag shoved into her mouth and she felt her heart pound in her rib cage furiously, like a bird trying to free itself from its confines. A hand ghosted over her clothed thigh, and another groped her breast.

This wasn't happening.

But when she felt fingers ripping her jeans off, and heard an all too familiar voice laughing, she knew this wasn't a dream.

"Have fun with her, boys."

* * *

**Hi, guys. On a scale of one to ten, how sorry am I? 1000000. Really. I'm sorry. Please don't kill me!**

**I've had a terrible writer's block but I was reading fanfics lately (another fandom, sorry!) and it cleared a bit so I took the chance to hastily write a chapter for this and another story. **

**This week I have 4 tests (one being gym. Ridiculous. I'm a writer (or aspiring writer), not an athlete) so I apologize if I disappear.**

**And also, recently, I discovered Aion! It's so fun, you guys should check it out! Who here plays?!**

**Anyway I am so sorry, and I understand if you're mad and want to kill me and just drop the story. But thanks to those who stuck with me! I was going to shout out all my readers who reviewed but I'm sort of really rushed right now, so I'm sorry! But you know who you are!**

**10 points to anyone who can guess what medical condition Amu has!**

**Please, review! If you review, maybe you can save Amu quicker! **

**-Dewberry**


	11. Changes

Amu struggled against the hands pushing against her but something pushed her head down roughly, causing her to bang her head on the floor loudly. She could feel more hands touching her body, roaming her freely as if they owned her. She tried to speak against the gag, hoping that maybe they'd let her go. Maybe they'd feel some pity for her. But when she felt something penetrate her, she knew it was nothing but a hopeless wish. She fell back onto the pavement, energy draining from her body.

It was painful at first. After all, they hadn't bothered to lubricate her. Later, her body picked up on what was going on and tried to help her. But it didn't really help when they started to penetrate her even further down. The pain rocketed up her spine and she screamed as she desperately tried to wriggle away but she felt someone smack her face until her screams were reduced to whimpers.

Amu didn't know how long it went on for. It seemed to go on for hours and hours. When the people seemed to be done, they literally got up and walked away. She lay for a little longer before she got up, clutching the shreds of her clothing to her body. Where could she go? Home?

Not after this.

She wasn't ready to face him.

Amu staggered around until she saw a lone bar in the distance. Should she go in? Or would she be taken again? Her mind in a thick haze, she limped closer and saw an alley. Maybe she could go through the backdoor and ask for help. Surely they would help then. Her mind began to slip in and out of consciousness but she fought it and made it to the alley. She could see the grimy door and a flickering light above it. Just a few more steps, she thought. The mossy floor was moist; a perfect cushion.

Amu's legs gave out beneath her as the remnants of her strength disappeared and her mind slipped back into the shadows. A weak cry came to her throat but even that wouldn't emerge. This was the end.

* * *

Ikuto sat on the stool, lazily drinking a glass of soda.

His friends were so annoying. They had somehow persuaded him to go to a bar that was somewhere in the shady part of the city. When they had said shady, they had meant it.

People were lurking in the shadows, their eyes glinting maliciously (or was it just his imagination?) in the light. The ceiling seemed to be falling apart since a couple of tiles were missing and another few were hanging quite precariously. And the worst of it all was the filthy muck that was on the walls. Ikuto thought he saw a couple of rats and even larger centipedes. It was absolutely disgusting.

Ikuto watched silently at the pulsing crowd in the center of the so-called "bar". Sweaty bodies rubbed against each other, desperate for friction. He took a small sip from his glass.

"Hello!" a bright, cheery voice said, breaking him from his thoughts. Ikuto turned to his right to see a pretty girl with her chocolate colored wavy hair in a ponytail.

"Hello."

"Why aren't you drinking anything?"

"I am."

"I know, I meant something alcoholic."

"Someone has to take their friends back home."

"Oh!" The girl giggled knowingly, inching closer to him by the second. Her hand rested on his lap, her long nails drumming on his thigh.

"Um."

"Is it fun here? My name is Megumi, by the way."

"It's okay. Look, I have to go somewhere."

"Huh? What about your friends?" A look of confusion crossed her face.

"I just realized I have to go see someone."

"Stay a little longer~" She pouted, her pink lips pursing.

"I'm sorry. I can't."

"Can I have your number?" Ikuto sighed.

"Okay." After scribbling down his number, he pried himself away from her and jogged outside, breathing in the fresh air. He would still have to wait for his friends, but where? He was definitely not going back inside to that hellhole. This was going to be the last time he went with them somewhere.

Ikuto walked into the alley nearby so he wouldn't get harassed by anyone who went in or came out. When he looked down, he nearly stumbled backward in surprise. A nearly naked body was sprawled on the floor, breathing heavily. Was this a prostitute? He noticed pale pink strands of hair falling over the female's shoulder. Could this be...

He leaned forward and a sharp gasp left his mouth.

The pale face was distorted into a frown and their mouth was opened slightly, harsh breaths of air coming out.

Amu.

Ikuto tore off his coat and gently placed it on top of her. What had happened? He didn't think she was the type to do this. Maybe she was a prostitute?

"O-ow. S-stop it, please...," she whimpered, tears beginning to trickle down her face.

No. Of course not. Rape...? It didn't matter right now. He wrapped her body up carefully and gently lifted her up, jogging to the car so as not to jostle her. What would he do now? The hospital? In his contemplation, he didn't notice her eyes fluttering open weakly.

* * *

Amu saw a head of navy blue hair in the thick fog in her mind. Ikuto? He would take her to the hospital. But it would all be revealed.

"N-not..." her voice cracked uselessly and wasn't even loud enough to be a whisper.

"N-not the hospital," she tried again. Luckily for her, he must have heard her because he turned around. He began to speak but her vision became blurry again, and she fell against the plush seat of the car.

* * *

Ikuto's mind swirled in a rush of thoughts. Where else could he go? To her home? But he didn't know where she lived.

Utau.

Ikuto whipped his phone out and quickly dialed Utau whilst starting the car.

"Hello?" her tired voice said on the other side.

"Utau? Listen, Amu's coming over."

"What? Why?" Ikuto took a left. He was speeding, but the roads were empty and he was in a rush.

"I think she was raped. I'm not sure."

"Oh my God! What? How?"

"I don't know, but she won't go to the hospital so I'm bringing her over. Can you set up a bath?"

"Of course! Are you almost here?"

"Be there in 5."

"Okay, it'll be ready by the time you get here." The phone clicked off on the other side.

He hurriedly drove, hoping she was going to be okay. When Ikuto got home, Utau was waiting for him by the door. As soon as she spotted the car, she ran over and helped him hoist her out. He ran to the bathroom and gently set her down on the tiled floor.

"Um... Utau..."

"I got this. You can just wait outside, okay?" Ikuto nodded and stepped outside, shutting the door close.

Utau gently shook Amu, and she awoke, her golden eyes filled with pain immediately.

"Amu, can you get up? You just need to get in the bath." Amu nodded weakly and Utau helped her up, letting her lean on her. When Amu got in, she looked away.

Utau glanced at her body and froze in shock. Amu's body was peppered with bruises and welts. Cuts layered her body, as if she had been lying in a field of glass. She was broken out of her trance when she heard the dripping of water into the tub. Utau could only watch as tears dripped from her chin into the warm bath.

"Amu. I need to see your face." She shook her head, her carnation pink hair swaying weakly. "Please. I want to help." Amu seemed to be contemplating before she slowly turned to Utau. Her face was caked with makeup. Utau needed to see what was underneath. Carefully, she began to clean. After a few layers, Utau could see a dark discoloration in her skin. By the time all the makeup was removed, Utau felt a wave of sadness. Even Amu's beautiful face was covered with dark blue bruises of all sizes. Her eyes was swollen and a cut was on her lip.

"Who did this?" Utau whispered, her own tears dropping.

"Y-you can't tell anyone," Amu said desperately, leaning on the edge of the bathtub.

"You have to tell me, or it'll never stop. What happened? Look at me."

Amu nervously looked at Utau, to see her violet eyes filled with agony, pain and anger. She wasn't being a fake. The emotions were real.

Maybe, Amu hoped, she could get out of this mess, once and for all.

Maybe.

So she opened her mouth and started from the beginning.

* * *

**Wow, it has been forever. **

**School is coming to a close and so everything is becoming so much more hectic!**

**I think I know where the plot is going so I'm hoping I can update faster but I can't promise you anything. There are still a bunch of loopholes to fill so, ugh, but hopefully I can pull through.**

**I'm really sorry, I really am.**

**Don't kill me!**

**On a stranger note, I noticed that more people have been reading, but less have been reviewing. Weird, right?  
**

**Anyway, thanks to those who stayed with me!**

**-Acai berry**


	12. Author's Note: Please read!

Hey, all!

This isn't a chapter update (I know, sorry!)!

And I'm sorry to say but there will never be a chapter update. (I know! Sorry!)

I'm going to be busy for a long time and I'm going away this summer too!

But the big thing is that I've found a fandom that I like more and that has more avid readers who are more welcoming (sorry to say) and so I'm moving. I've been with them for quite a while and I just started writing for them but they're super supportive and stuff and I made many more friends much quicker.

So, I decided to devote my time to writing fics for them and its more interesting for me too.

Anyway, that's all I have to say.

Maybe in the future I might start writing again for here, but honestly with the state of this fandom right now, I don't think I will be.

Thanks to all my reviewers and followers though-you guys were all wonderful and beautiful people!

Once again, I'm sorry, but it was fun while it lasted.

Bye!

-Juneberry


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